4. Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Labour—New Lynn) Link to this
to the Minister of Finance
Why will the cancellation of the Government’s plans to mine sensitive conservation land have no effect on the GDP growth projections for the next 5 years?
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance) Link to this
As the plans to extend mining were not confirmed Government policy, they were not included in the Budget economic projections.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
Why, then, was mining schedule 4 conservation land part of the Government’s economic step change agenda when he has been conspicuously unable to give us any projections of the impact it was expected to have on GDP over the next 5, 10, or 15 years?
Mining and the use of other resources is part of the Government’s agenda. Mining on schedule 4 land was only ever a small part of the potential in this country, and the Government continues to encourage those who want to turn that potential into real jobs and higher incomes for New Zealand families.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
Are the Government’s proposed changes to employment law, which will allow an employer to fire an employee without good reason, part of the step change economic agenda; if so, will it have a measurable impact on GDP; if so, by how much?
The extension of the 90-day trial period is part of a package of industrial measures that have pretty broad support in the community. We believe that it will provide more opportunities for people who do not have jobs to get them and provide more opportunities for the businesses in New Zealand that are a bit tentative about the economic recovery to actually take someone on, thereby providing a new job and a higher income for a New Zealand family.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. The Minister has not addressed the question. It was a straight question. It went to the GDP impact of the proposed law change. There was no mention of the economic impact whatsoever.
Mr SPEAKERWith respect, I think that the member had several pieces to the question. To expect, in a supplementary question, the Minister to go through each of those pieces is, I think, a bit beyond the requirements of the Standing Orders.
Aaron GilmoreBudget 2010 includes the forecasts for the next 4 years. They show the economy growing at 3.1 percent per year, on average, but they also point out the risks to that growth. The rate achieved over the past 4 years was a 0.5 percent growth of GDP, including 3 years from 2005 when our per capita GDP growth actually shrank.
Hon David Cunliffe Link to this
Given that the Budget’s projection was that his tax cut package will add less than 1 percent growth to GDP over an entire 7 years, what policy or policies does he plan that will actually close the gap with Australia?
We believe that the range of measures, including the tax package, the infrastructure investment, the cutting of red tape, the raising of skills, and the increase in innovation, will all add to growth. But the most important thing that New Zealand has done to improve its growth prospects was to vote out the reckless Labour Government.